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Governance Event Marks A New Era Of Accountability For The World’s Leading Multilateral Summits

Ambassadors and high-level guests attend the launch event for the Global Governance Project, an initiative in collaboration with the world-renowned G7 and G20 Research Groups covering compliance, accountability measures and good governance in connection with the annual G7 and G20 summits.

The Global Governance Project and Lord David Evans of Watford yesterday hosted the event ‘Demonstrating Good Governance’ at the House of Commons in Westminster, London.

The event marked the official launch of the Global Governance Project, a joint initiative between GT Media Group Ltd, a publishing house based in London, and the G7 and G20 Research Groups, based at the University of Toronto, Canada.

The Research Groups are the world’s leading source of unbiased, in-depth and independent information on the G7 and G20. They have been producing research and analysis on summit agendas for more than 30 years. Their research is respected at the highest levels. The Research Groups produce a compliance report on the outcomes and commitments made at each summit, holding the leaders of these systemically significant countries accountable to their promises.

The Global Governance Project leverages the heritage and respect that has been fostered by the G7 and G20 Research Groups. The partnership takes the learning, research, and summit compliance reports produced by the Research Group and collects independent recommendations from invested organisations on the big issues being addressed in the world today. These are then published in the authoritative G7 and G20 Summit briefing books, given to world leaders at the annual summits and simultaneously shared with global stakeholders.

Publisher Khaled Algaay commented on the successful launch of the G7 title in Charlevoix, Canada, which had a tremendous digital footprint of more than 60,000 downloads and impressive print circulation. “We’re very much looking forward to doing another fantastic job when we publish G20 Argentina,” he said.

The event welcomed high-level guests, speakers and partners including representatives from IGOs, Chambers of Commerce, UK government and parliament, and high commissions and embassies worldwide.

Dr Tristen Naylor, a senior fellow in international relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science, said, “This is a critical moment for global governance. Managed well, incorporating the voices of those excluded from the top table, we might weather the rocky political moment in which we find ourselves. Managed poorly, we might find ourselves taking very large steps backwards.”

Among the speakers was Argentine Ambassador to the UK H.E. Carlos Sersale di Cerisano, who spoke of Argentina’s pride in hosting the G20, one of the biggest multilateral summits in the world. Argentina is the first Latin American country to do so.

He said, “Argentina is a country with diverse identity, it’s in our DNA. Our G20 presidency aims to represent the entire region. We want all countries to commit to equitable and sustainable economic development that generates opportunities for all people. This means setting environmental, economic and social goals to define how governments will respond to the technological revolution and how they will put the people first. Consensus decisions at the G20 level, accompanied by the contribution of civil society groups, will seek to pave the way for our children to have a better education, our young people to be better prepared to find work, and our country to build the infrastructure that it needs in order to develop.”

Promises made and discussions held at the Argentina G20 summit will be closely monitored by the Global Governance Project, which unites academics, scholars, and economists in keeping track of compliance on commitments made by our leaders, holding them accountable to their promises. To do so, the Global Governance Project and Research Groups work directly with governments, summit sherpas, intergovernmental organisations, outreach groups and multi- and bilateral lending bodies.

Information gathered is published in the annual G7 and G20 summit briefing books and online at g7g20summits.org. These authorised publications cover key summit themes, present compliance statistics on previously made commitments, and make recommendations for governments and industry around the world.

The next briefing book will be published ahead of the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, taking place on 30 November – 1 December 2018.

Deloitte Assists The National Cybersecurity Society As Part Of Deloitte’s 19th Annual Impact Day By Contributing To Their Mission Of Providing Cybersecurity Education To Small Businesses.

On Friday, June 8, more than 40 Information Technology security and cybersecurity professionals from Deloitte volunteered with The National Cybersecurity Society (NCSS) as part of Deloitte’s annual nationwide day of service, Impact Day. The event was hosted by WeWork, White House, who donated office, conference space and refreshments.

“We were very excited to work with the NCSS,” said Joe Costigan, consultant, Deloitte Consulting LLP, who served as the co-site lead for Impact Day. “Assisting them with developing educational content is a great way to use our experience to make an impact that matters,” he continued.

NCSS works with small businesses, victims of cybercrime, nonprofits and businesses of all sizes to help protect businesses from cyber threats and to mitigate the effects of cyber incidents when they occur. Protecting small business against cybersecurity risks is among the key factors to building a strong U.S economy.

“We volunteered alongside NCSS to help them in their efforts to update their educational tools,” said Tia Bent, senior consultant, Deloitte Consulting LLP, and co-site lead.

Impact Day is a celebration of Deloitte’s year-round commitment to local communities. On Impact Day, and throughout the year, Deloitte professionals are committed to making an impact that matters in the communities where they live and work. The goal is to help people, including undervalued groups, reach their full potential, which in turn helps strengthen America’s future workforce and economy. For more information on Deloitte’s 19th annual Impact Day, visit: https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/impact-day.html.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL CYBERSECURITY SOCIETYThe National Cybersecurity Society (NCSS) is committed to improving the online safety and security of the small business community through education, awareness, and advocacy. As a 501(3)(c) organization, the NCSS uses funds from charitable donations and grants to develop educational materials, webinars, weekly cyber tips and other aids to inform the small business community. The organization’s goal is to enable and empower small and medium businesses to obtain cybersecurity services; assist them in understanding their cyber risk; and advise on the type of protection needed.

About Deloitte
Deloitte provides industry-leading audit, consulting, tax and advisory services to many of the world’s most admired brands, including more than 85 percent of the Fortune 500 and more than 6,000 private and middle market companies. Our people work across more than 20 industry sectors to make an impact that matters — delivering measurable and lasting results that help reinforce public trust in our capital markets, inspire clients to see challenges as opportunities to transform and thrive, and help lead the way toward a stronger economy and a healthy society. Deloitte is proud to be part of the largest global professional services network serving our clients in the markets that are most important to them.

Deloitte refers to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, a UK private company limited by guarantee (“DTTL”), its network of member firms, and their related entities. DTTL and each of its member firms are legally separate and independent entities. DTTL (also referred to as “Deloitte Global”) does not provide services to clients. In the United States, Deloitte refers to one or more of the US member firms of DTTL, their related entities that operate using the “Deloitte” name in the United States and their respective affiliates. Certain services may not be available to attest clients under the rules and regulations of public accounting. Please see www.deloitte.com/about to learn more about our global network of member firms.

MDA, a Maxar Technologies company (formerly MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd.), (NYSE: MAXR) (TSX: MAXR), today announced that a contract was signed between its recently acquired Neptec UK Ltd. (Neptec) company and Effective Space, the UK company pioneering last-mile logistics in space, for the supply of a space flight LIDAR and infrared camera for its on-orbit servicing SPACE DRONE™ spacecraft.

Capable of extending the life of ageing satellites by as many as 15 years, the SPACE DRONE™ spacecraft uses MDA’s LIDAR and infrared camera to confidently and safely approach and dock with orbiting geostationary satellites. Two SPACE DRONE™ spacecraft will be launched into orbit in 2020, as part of a $100 millioncontract with a major regional satellite operator. MDA will execute the project from its newly expanded United Kingdom business.

To allow the SPACE DRONE™ spacecraft to accurately approach other spacecraft for servicing, MDA sensors will be used to generate a 3D picture of the target spacecraft, providing critical information on the distance to the other vehicle. Once docked, the SPACE DRONE™ spacecraft will provide attitude and orbit control for the combined vehicle, allowing the satellite to continue operating.

The technology that will enable this mission was developed at the laboratories on Harwell Campus in the UK, through funding and support from the UK Space Agency. The space LIDAR was designed to form part of an automated landing system for a lunar lander. Capable of operating safely and reliably in the harsh environment of space, LIDAR is also perfectly suited for rendezvous and docking in Earth orbit. The LIDAR uses reflected pulses of light from a laser to build a 3D map of any target, be it the moon or another spacecraft.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Effective Space on this project,” said Mike Greenley, group president of MDA. The ability to perform safe rendezvous and docking will be a vital part of future space exploration, whether it is applied to extension of satellite life, de-orbiting space debris, or building the next generation of space stations and human outposts. We are fortunate to be able to immediately leverage our recent expansion of MDA’s UK business to exploit past investments by the UK Space Agency, in full alignment with the UK Space Agency’s strategy to establish an on-orbit servicing industrial capability. As the established world leader in space sensors and robotics, we are pleased to expand this capability through our UK business. ”

“This mission, and others like it, will provide key steps towards an exciting future for the burgeoning on-orbit servicing market, and we are pleased to leverage MDA’s technology base to support UK companies such as Effective Space, and with MDA playing a key role,” said Kerry Sanz, Programme Manager at MDA.

“Space exploration pushes the boundaries of human ingenuity and produces new technologies that often have commercial applications,” said Libby Jackson, Human Spaceflight and Microgravity Programme Manager at the UK Space Agency. This is a great example which highlights the value of our investment in European Space Agency exploration programmes and the capabilities of the UK’s growing space sector.”

“Ensuring our spacecraft are able to efficiently and safely rendezvous with satellites was a critical requirement for us, and NEPTEC’s LIDAR and infrared camera technologies were the standout choice,” added Arie Halsband, Founder and CEO, Effective Space. “MDA has extensive experience developing solutions for some of the most challenging problems in space and we’re excited to be working closely with them to advance on-orbit servicing.”

About MDA

MDA is an internationally recognized leader in space robotics, space sensors, satellite payloads, antennas and subsystems, surveillance and intelligence systems, defence and maritime systems, and geospatial radar imagery. MDA’s extensive space expertise and heritage translates into mission-critical defence and commercial applications that include multi-platform command, control and surveillance systems, aeronautical information systems, land administration systems and terrestrial robotics. MDA is also a leading supplier of actionable mission-critical information and insights derived from multiple data sources. Founded in 1969, MDA is recognized as one of Canada’s most successful technology ventures with locations in Richmond, Ottawa, Brampton, Montreal, Halifax and the United Kingdom. MDA is a Maxar Technologies company (TSX: MAXR) (NYSE: MAXR). For more information, visit www.mdacorporation.com.

About Maxar Technologies

As a global leader of advanced space technology solutions, Maxar Technologies (formerly MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates) is at the nexus of the new space economy, developing and sustaining the infrastructure and delivering the information, services, systems that unlock the promise of space for commercial and government markets. As a trusted partner, Maxar Technologies provides vertically-integrated capabilities and expertise including satellites, Earth imagery, robotics, geospatial data and analytics to help customers anticipate and address their most complex mission-critical challenges with confidence. With more than 6,500 employees in over 30 global locations, the Maxar Technologies portfolio of commercial space brands includes MDA, SSL, DigitalGlobe and Radiant Solutions. Every day, billions of people rely on Maxar to communicate, share information and data, and deliver insights that Build a Better World. Maxar trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange as MAXR. For more information, visit www.maxar.com.

About Effective Space

Headquartered in the UK, Effective Space is pioneering last-mile logistics in space. It deploys and operates a fleet of small SPACE DRONE™ spacecraft that will deliver, position, maintain, monitor and guarantee space assets in orbit and beyond.

Its ‘Phase One’ rollout is based on an existing solid business case: life-extension services to operators of satellites in geosynchronous-earth-orbit (GEO). Services include station-keeping and attitude-control, relocation, orbit and inclination correction, deorbiting and ‘bringing into use’ (BIU).

This release contains forward-looking statements and information, which reflect the current view of Maxar Technologies Ltd. (the “Company”) with respect to future events and financial performance. The forward-looking statements in this regard include statements regarding the award of a contract. Any such forward-looking statements are based on the Company’s current expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends. The factors and assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements in this release include contracts not being terminated. Any such forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations. The Company cautions readers that should certain risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary significantly from those expected. The risks that could cause actual results to differ from current expectations include, but are not limited to: risks associated with operating a satellite including in-orbit failures or impaired satellite performance; quality issues, failure of systems to meet performance requirements, potential for product liability, or the occurrence of defects in products or systems could result in lost revenue and harm to the Company’s reputation; failure of third parties and subcontractors; and failure to anticipate changes in technology, technical standards and offerings or compliance with the requisite standards, or failure to maintain technological advances and offer new products to retain customers and market position.

For additional information with respect to certain of these risks or factors, plus additional risks or factors, reference should be made to the Company’s continuous disclosure materials filed from time to time with Canadian and U.S. securities regulatory authorities, which are available online under the Company’s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com, under the Company’s EDGAR profile at www.sec.gov or on the Company’s website at www.maxar.com.

Organizations Are Tapping Into Kolabtree’s Global Pool Of Freelance Scientists For Help Solving Research And Business Challenges.

The rate at which the gig economy is growing is staggering, with 34% of the US workforce already comprising freelancers. It is no longer unusual for companies to hire individuals and even entire teams based in other continents. An increasing number of academics and scientists are jumping onto the freelancing bandwagon, becoming more accessible to organizations that need to consult them. Kolabtree, a global freelancing platform, is making it possible for organizations to hire and work with scientists from NASA, engineers from MIT, biologists from Cambridge University, and more.

PhD-level expertise in niche areas is hard to find, and when it is accessible, it is often unaffordable. Startups, SMEs, and nonprofit organizations are unlikely to have full-fledged R&D departments or in-house, full-time scientists. Kolabtree helps these businesses hire PhD-qualified freelance scientists and researchers for short-term projects.

“Since we launched in 2015, we’ve seen a strong and consistent increase in the number of freelance scientists, as well as in demand for their services. Organizations use Kolabtree as a one-stop resource to get quick help from experts on a budget of their choice. In some cases, we’ve helped businesses cut costs by up to 50%,” says Ashmita Das, Co-founder and CEO, Kolabtree.

Kolabtree receives over 100 projects a month, from a variety of organizations around the world including government organizations, nonprofits, CROs, startups, and publishers. Some of the most commonly requested services are literature searches, scientific writing, data science and statistical analysis.

The platform has facilitated several unique, cross-country collaborations. A Norwegian dermatologist hired a statistician from Italy for help with the statistical analysis of a study being prepared for journal publication. The managing director of a life sciences company based in Belgium hired a Canadian researcher for a comprehensive literature search on a specific aspect of lung cancer. A food startup in California hired an experienced food scientist from North Carolina to help stabilizing the shelf life of their mayonnaise product.

But what’s in it for the freelancer?

Dr. Richard Bradford, a freelance statistician registered on Kolabtree, says, “Kolabtree provides a platform that allows me, and freelancers like myself, to review and consider projects that I might like to get involved in. As a freelancer, your primary obligation and therefore the focus of your attention and energy should be on the client and the client’s needs. Kolabtree is an excellent solution that makes the freelancer’s life easier and therefore engagements more enjoyable and rewarding.”

The uberization of the economy means that talent, expertise, and knowledge are no longer bound by lines on a map. Kolabtree allows organizations and individuals to recruit without restriction from a readily-available resource pool that spans 700 countries. Companies no longer have to fish in the local pond, but can cast their nets overseas to access the best talent.

About Kolabtree

Kolabtree connects businesses and labs with freelance PhD-qualified scientists all over the world. The platform has over 5,000 registered freelance PhDs who are offering services such as statistical review, data analytics, literature search, writing, editing, scientific consulting and experimental design. Experts include scientists from the likes of NASA, Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and Cambridge, with expertise across disciplines including life science, data science, healthcare, social science, and physical science.

If you are a business needing the help of a freelancer, you can post your project for free on www.kolabtree.com.

STEM – An Acronym That’s Widely Talked About In The Education World Focusing On Science, Technology, Engineering, And Math – Is Lighting The Way For The Future Of Education.

FIRST Washington, the largest after-school STEM program in the state engages youth grades K-12 through competitive robotics competitions. Several of the FIRST Washington’s team’s robots are currently on display at Inspirus Credit Union in Tukwila.

Nearly 11,500 Washington students make up more than 1,100 FIRST Washington teams statewide.

FIRST Washington participants gain first-hand experience designing, building, and programming robots that perform pre-determined tasks as part of a game. Just as important, participants are integrated into a fun, team-based learning environment created to encourage their interests, teach the benefits of collaboration, boost self-confidence, and illuminate the exciting world of STEM student and careers.

“FIRST teaches students life skills that are preparing them for life beyond high school,” said FIRST Washington President Erin McCallum. “Whether that means college for some, or going into the workforce after high school, FIRST is helping them get there.”

The mission of FIRST Washington is to inspire all young people to be science and technology leaders by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering, and technology skills that inspire innovation and foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership.

“Programs like FIRST Washington go to the core of what we stand for at Inspirus – giving back to the education community,” said Inspirus Credit Union President Scott Adkins. “We’re honored to share the work of these students, and we know they will grow up to accomplish great things.”

Inspirus is donating $2,500 to support FIRST Washington in local schools while additionally showcasing the program in their Tukwila branch.

“It’s amazing to see the work of these students and we’re so thankful for the support of Inspirus, which will help three FIRST teams build their robots and compete this upcoming season,” said McCallum.

About FIRST WashingtonSince 2011, FIRST Washington, a nonprofit organization, has offered mentor-based after school programs that ignite youthful minds through education, hard work, mentorship and healthy competition. These programs foster well-rounded life skills such as self-confidence, teamwork, and leadership. Currently there are nearly 11,500 young people (6 to 18 years old) participating in FIRST programs across the state. Teams and the organization are supported by more than 5,500 volunteers including coaches and mentors. FIRST Washington strives to alleviate the growing problem of a shortage of skilled professionals in STEM and the need for an innovative workforce by using strategies that promote STEM interest, knowledge, and learning and that inspire students to pursue post-secondary education/training in STEM. The four after school programs include: FIRST LEGO League Jr. (grades K-4th); FIRST LEGO League (grades 4th-8th); FIRST Tech Challenge (grades 7th –12th); FIRST Robotics Competition (grades 9th-12th). For more information on FIRST Washington or to find out how to get involved please visit: http://www.firstwa.org.

About Inspirus Credit UnionInspirus Credit Union (pronounced inspire-us) is where banking benefits education. When members use Inspirus for their financial services, they are furthering the credit union’s mission and increasing contributions to Washington’s education community. Nearly 80,000 member-owners share a passion for education that connects them to Inspirus and Washington classrooms. The credit union is a not-for-profit financial institution that returns earnings to members through lower loan rates, higher returns on deposit, and donates time, talents, and dollars to the communities it serves. With $1.2 billion in assets, Inspirus operates branches in Seattle, Spokane, and Lynnwood. For more information, visit inspirusCU.org.

Audit, tax and advisory firm KPMG LLP has announced plans for its 28th Annual Accounting and Financial Reporting Symposium to help corporate financial executives understand the financial reporting and management issues impacting them in the next year. KPMG’s popular CPE-eligible program focusing on need-to-know emerging financial reporting issues will occur Nov. 29 – Nov. 30 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

“Blockchain and cyber security have become central themes of concern for today’s accounting professionals,” said John Ebner, KPMG’s National Managing Partner – Audit. “This year’s Symposium will provide attendees with the opportunity to learn about blockchain and its implications on accounting and financial reporting in the future. In addition, a breakout session will be offered to address cyber security concerns specific to accounting and finance departments.”

Breakout sessions will include a focus on the adoption of the new revenue recognition, new lease accounting, and financial instruments standards. Other topics such as, data and analytics, international financial reporting standards, business combinations issues, and internal controls will also be featured.

The Symposium includes leading KPMG professionals and executives to offer insights on critical issues and developments, including recent guidance from the FASB and SEC, global accounting issues and concerns around year-end reporting activities.

“In a concentrated two-day event, our Symposium provides financial executives from across the country with relevant information on technical, regulatory and compliance topics, along with discussions of prominent, leading practices in financial leadership,” said Tricia Maslov, Managing Director, KPMG Executive Education, which organizes and delivers the Symposium. “Participants will walk away with in-depth knowledge on new accounting standards and leadership insights that they can apply in their financial reporting roles.”

Visit KPMG Executive Education’s Symposium website to learn more about the content and to register to attend.

About KPMG Executive Education
From basic and advanced technical accounting courses and seminars for CPE Credit to in-depth conferences, KPMG Executive Education provides a range of effective continuing education learning experiences for corporate executives and their staffs in the accounting, finance and business management professions. To learn more, and find registration information for the Annual Accounting and Financial Reporting Symposium, go to www.execed.kpmg.com.

About KPMG LLPKPMG LLP is the independent U.S. member firm of KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”). KPMG International’s independent member firms have 197,000 professionals working in 154 countries. Learn more at www.kpmg.com/us.

A new report on the North Texas city of Dallas came together late last month to analyze and outline the area’s current and future position as a hub for innovation throughout the nation. Through the work of four local organizations including The Dallas Regional Chamber and Accenture, DFW’s economy was researched at length along with focus groups representing the area’s leaders from startups, corporations, academia and social sectors.

Although the popular Texas city has been capturing attention nationwide for its recent record breaking economic and population growth, contributors of the report uncover untapped potential that will set the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex ahead as an innovation leader.

Through five key areas, brand, talent, collisions, resources, and impact; the report seeks to provide analysis on the current state of the city while also identifying the opportunities in the community. Focused on boosting the economy, attracting wealth, and creating jobs; the report’s authors state the importance of using this document for creating awareness and actionable items to address current and future issues and the implementation of necessary change.

One of its best years as a national leader, research uncovered recognizes the city for its strength as the home to a leading network of Fortune 500 companies, universities, charitable organizations and donors. The state’s second largest city also brings a growing entrepreneurial community that has made headlines in recent months. “With the number of supporting startup resources such as cowork spaces, incubators and corporate innovation centers increasing in numbers, the growth of this business network is drawing in attention,” shares DFW based entrepreneur Marcus Hiles. However, despite this positive recognition the new business community of North Texas is also being stunted.

The current lack of investor confidence and early-stage funding is a critical factor limiting the area’s innovation. Recognized earlier this year through AOL co-founder Steve Case’s recent Rise of the Rest Roadtrip tour that brought to light the deficit for funding that is leaving many of today’s highest potential businesses unnoticed. In fact, funding going into the Texas city’s entrepreneurial community makes up only 2% of startup capital seen nationwide.

Education is another area not fully utilized to build the talent pool of the city’s homegrown future workforce. Out of state migration growth, specifically that of new graduates, to the Dallas area is one of the largest in the nation and reflects this growing gap in employment.

The area was also critiqued for its inability to harness the diversity it brings as a national and even global leader across many industries as well as the multiple innovation hubs it has established. “Highlighting local inventions such as the ATM and Texas Instruments’ microchip along with Dallas-based industry pioneers like AT&T – the #10 top producing Fortune 500 company in the country – the city often does not gain the recognition it deserves,” adds Marcus who has been an influential player in the area’s property development industry for nearly three decades.

Rounding out the report was 10 top priority opportunities in an action item list that serve to address the issues and position the city as a national innovation hub. Focused around support from local institutions, entrepreneurs, and a means for growing a stronger talent force; the report continues to emphasize the need for promotion of innovation that is backed by influential individuals and organizations throughout the country. By using this report as a guidebook for growth its authors feel North Texas will soon be a top destination for the future’s workforce, industry accomplishments and investment opportunities.

Nielsen Sets New Industry Standard And Offers Earliest Read Into The Retail And Consumer Goods Marketplace

Today, Nielsen (NYSE: NLSN) set a new industry standard for U.S. retail measurement with the launch of Friday morning data delivery. Keeping in stride with the accelerated pace of today’s business climate, Nielsen’s Friday morning data delivery will provide the earliest read into the retail and consumer goods marketplace, enabling companies to identify and move on market trends, sooner.

Nielsen’s first-to-market launch will reduce wait time for weekly retail sales performance data, which industry wide, often carries through the weekend and into the early days of the following week. Nielsen’s ability to deliver data on Friday morning grants retail and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies advanced access to weekly sales performance data reporting on volume, market share, distribution, price and promotion metrics across all Nielsen’s Total U.S. All Outlets Combined (xAOC) channels inclusive of grocery stores, drug stores, mass merchandisers, select dollar stores, select warehouse clubs and military commissaries (DeCA). Access to this enhanced data delivery option will enable both retailers and manufacturers to end the week more informed so they can more effectively strategize for the week ahead and stay in front of competitors through quick, data-driven decisions. With this unprecedented launch, Nielsen clients will have the first read into the industry, strengthening their own position to compete in a competitive market.

“Nielsen is no stranger to being a driver of progress,” said John Tavolieri, President of U.S. FMCG and Retail and Chief Technology and Operations Officer at Nielsen. “We continue to break barriers and today, we transcend the vision of a product by delivering an in-market solution that is stimulating industry change through speed. For our clients, we saw the need to fuel faster decision making, and we are proud to be the first data provider within our industry to bring-to-market our Friday morning data delivery. Now more than ever, speed of data is imperative. Earlier data delivery leads to faster data-driven actions. For all companies navigating the current dynamic business environment, every day counts.”

ABOUT NIELSENNielsen Holdings plc (NYSE: NLSN) is a global measurement and data analytics company that provides the most complete and trusted view available of consumers and markets worldwide. Our approach marries proprietary Nielsen data with other data sources to help clients around the world understand what’s happening now, what’s happening next, and how to best act on this knowledge. For more than 90 years Nielsen has provided data and analytics based on scientific rigor and innovation, continually developing new ways to answer the most important questions facing the media, advertising, retail and fast-moving consumer goods industries. An S&P 500 company, Nielsen has operations in over 100 countries, covering more than 90% of the world’s population. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com.

Healthcare And Life Sciences Organizations Mine Unstructured Data For Insights To Drive Advances In Precision Medicine And Enhance Patient Care

Cloudera, Inc., (NYSE: CLDR), the modern platform for machine learning and analytics optimized for the cloud, and MetiStream, a healthcare analytics provider, jointly announce products to improve patient outcomes. MetiStream announces it is introducing an end-to-end interactive analytics platform for healthcare and life science industries built on Cloudera’s machine learning platform. By combining machine learning and analytics from Cloudera Enterprise and Cloudera Data Science Workbench, MetiStream states that its Ember product can deliver insights across massive volumes of handwritten clinical notes as well as genomic data providing a path for healthcare organizations to cost-effectively improve genomic research and accelerate time to patient insight.

Because 80% of healthcare data is unstructured, it becomes difficult for legacy data storage and analytics platforms to process, analyze and correlate across a patient population. The advances of Cloudera’s platform with MetiStream’s healthcare analytics solution now give organizations the ability to capture relevant information from diverse healthcare datasets such as unstructured clinical notes, genomics, imaging, and EHR data and correlate the data for insight, allowing them to identify patient risk, improve service quality, and enhance physician-patient collaboration according to Chiny Driscoll, chief executive officer at MetiStream.

MetiStream’s Ember product works with the Cloudera Shared Data Experience (SDX), a software framework powering Cloudera Enterprise, that allows healthcare providers to bring together data from different sources and gain insight into patient health profiles. With the power and scale of the Cloudera Enterprise platform, the ability to merge clinical datasets with genomics information and apply advanced analytics now becomes possible and the result is impactful for healthcare organizations focused on enhancing genomics medicine and patient care.

“We believe that machine learning and analytics are powerful tools for understanding diseases, improving outcomes, containing costs and delivering better care where it’s needed most,” said Mike Olson, founder and chief strategy officer at Cloudera. “Today, healthcare organizations can do what was previously impossible. They can integrate complex data sets from EHR, genomics, and imaging with machine learning and analytics at massive scale for momentous transformations in patient care, engagement, and outcomes.”

Healthcare organizations must access and process many complex and multi-structured data sets to be more prescriptive and proactive with patient care, as well as be able to more accurately report codes that impact financials and regulatory compliance. With comprehensive information that is now easier and faster to access, providers can share disease risk and prevention techniques with patients at the time of care instead of days or weeks later.

“With Cloudera, we have a unique opportunity to transform how healthcare organizations can use more comprehensive and diverse datasets to improve quality and patient outcomes. Our Ember platform delivers a better approach to how physicians and patients can interpret and analyze healthcare findings and discoveries. We believe analytics is even more powerful when insights can be shared in real-time and are interactive and evidence-based, which is why we brought Ember to the healthcare marketplace,” said Chiny Driscoll, CEO at MetiStream.

Healthcare Organizations Speed Analytics to Improve Patient CareTogether, Cloudera and MetiStream empowered a U.S. News & World Report top ranked U.S. hospital, Rush University Medical Center, which is an academic health system comprised of Rush University Medical Center, Rush University, Rush Oak Park Hospital and Rush Health. The Chicago-based medical system needed a healthcare analytics platform to process a backlog of clinical notes. Using solutions from both Cloudera and MetiStream, the medical center was able to process 7.2 million records in less than thirty-six hours. As a result of using the healthcare analytics platform, the medical center improved the standard of care by identifying patients with certain disease risks earlier than ever before possible.

“With Cloudera and MetiStream on Microsoft Azure, we can quickly spin up and down resources as our data processing needs change and evolve, and we can load huge volumes of data in days that would have taken weeks on premises. We have also been able to apply machine learning to discover new insights from our data, and by using Cloudera technologies, we are working to make development of new models easier and faster for our data scientists,” said Dr. Bala Hota, Chief Analytics Officer at Rush University Medical Center.

Additionally, Cloudera and MetiStream empowered Sharp Healthcare and Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group specialists to process more than 10 years of clinical notes and index them for search. By leveraging the scalable, massively parallel, in-memory power of Apache Spark, Cloudera and MetiStream support the end-to-end process of extracting, processing, storing and analyzing Sharp’s clinical text data in a fraction of the time this once-manual job required. With the new solution, Sharp can now leverage NLP to discern clinical terms and then normalize these terms to well-known ontology codes, most notably UMLS CUI, Snomed-CT, and RxNorm. The result is a solution that gives Sharp the ability to flexibly search their entire notes history for any text, phrase, term, acronym, or code and return the date and time stamp along with other patient information within milliseconds. Coupled with open source Apache Spark, the now annotated clinical data can be used to train a model in Cloudera Data Science Workbench, and develop risk predictions, allowing Sharp to capitalize on machine learning and AI.

“If you had asked me two years ago what I could have done with machine learning, deep learning, and Spark, it is exactly what MetiStream and Cloudera have packaged and outlined in their joint offering. I see this as an exciting breakthrough for the future of healthcare,” said Dr. Randall Hawkins, neurologist, Sharp Rees-Steal Medical Group, San Diego.

The Cloudera Enterprise platform and MetiStream healthcare analytics solution are currently available.

About MetiStreamMetiStream is a healthcare analytics platform and solutions provider. We deliver innovation at the intersection of big data, artificial intelligence and healthcare analytics. Our mission is to help healthcare organizations maximize the use of their data assets to improve patient outcomes, decrease risks and accelerate healthcare discoveries. Our platform provides a complete end-to-end , allowing organizations to ingest, process, and analyze large volumes of complex healthcare data sets within a single platform. Learn more at Metistream.com.

About ClouderaAt Cloudera, we believe that data can make what is impossible today, possible tomorrow. We empower people to transform complex data into clear and actionable insights. We deliver the modern platform for machine learning and analytics optimized for the cloud. The world’s largest enterprises trust Cloudera to help solve their most challenging business problems. Learn more at Cloudera.com.

Cloudera and associated marks and trademarks are registered trademarks of Cloudera, Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

This press release contains forward-looking statements including, among other things, statements regarding the expected performance and benefits of Cloudera’s offerings. The words “believe,” “may,” “will,” “plan,” “expect,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. If the risks materialize or assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. Risks include, but are not limited to, risks described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including our Form S-1 Registration Statement, and our future reports that we may file with the SEC from time to time, which could cause actual results to vary from expectations. Cloudera assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

Envision Experience, the leading provider of high quality career exploration and leadership programs for K-12 students, today announced the launch of the Partners in Potential fund, which provides over $1 million in need-based and merit-based scholarships annually to students who attend summer programs designed to help young learners explore careers in today’s dynamic world-of-work. As part of this initiative, Envision Experience has teamed up with like-minded organizations that want to expand career exploration access for young people.

According to a recent World Economic Forum report, 65% of today’s elementary school students will ultimately hold jobs that don’t yet exist. The fast-changing jobs landscape has made career exploration for students in elementary, middle and high school more important than ever. New approaches are needed both at home and at school to help students discover their passions, and get hands-on experience to “test drive” career paths, and develop skills that will enable them to adapt to an increasingly complex and evolving labor market.

“The opportunity to attend the National Youth Leadership Forum on National Security is incredibly exciting, and I’m honored to be the recipient of the Envisionary of the Year scholarship,” said Haley Graham, a 9th grader from Baltimore, Md., and recipient of Envision Experience’s Dr. Marguerite C. Regan Envisionary of the Year scholarship. “My goal is to one day join the United States Air Force, and participating in NYLF this summer will give me the opportunity to see the ins and outs of a career in national security.”

This summer, Graham will be participating in the National Youth Leadership Forum: National Security – Diplomacy, Intelligence & Defense in Washington, D.C., where she will learn first-hand how the United States monitors potential threats, prepares for crisis, and plans for peace.

Founded by an educator and congressional staffer in 1985, Envision Experience’s summer programs allow students to discover their career passions through hands-on experiences linked to more than 20 different career, leadership, and technology pathways. The programs, developed by educators and subject-matter experts, are designed to prepare students to discover how their passions and interests connect to careers and the academic pathways to get them there. This summer, Envision Experience will conduct 140 sessions in areas including medicine, engineering, media, and gaming technology at 38 different locations across the United States and the world.

ACT and St. John’s University are among the initial organizations committing to provide scholarships through the new fund. As part of this effort, ACT, the nonprofit organization behind college and career readiness assessments, has pledged funds over the next three years to help students be workforce ready. Meanwhile, St. John’s University is collaborating with Envision Experience to identify and fully fund several underserved students each year to attend St. John’s pre-college programming in partnership with Envision Experience.

Envision Experience’s newest scholarship is the Krauss Scholarship, which is dedicated to Captain Gordon W. Krauss. The scholarship is funded by the son of Captain Krauss, Dr. Gordon Krauss, who is the Fletcher Jones Professor of Engineering Design at Harvey Mudd College and the assisting curriculum writer for Envision Experience’s NYLF Engineering & Technology program.

“Summer camp is not just for sports anymore; more and more students are looking at career exploration as an impactful way to spend a portion of their summer,” said Duncan Young, CEO of Envision Experience. “More than 800,000 students have participated in our programs to discover and explore new passions and learn alongside peers that share those interests. Our new scholarships reflect our commitment to ensuring that all students, regardless of economic background, have access to transformative experiences that help them chart their path in life.”

About Envision ExperienceEnvision Experience is the nation’s leading provider of career exploration and leadership programs that help students make their career, college, and life aspirations a reality. Envision Experience offers twenty unique programs, including the Junior National Young Leaders Conference (JrNYLC) and National Youth Leadership Forums (NYLF) on Medicine, Business Innovation, Engineering & Technology, Law & CSI, National Security, Media, and Pathways to STEM and Explore STEM programs for early STEM exploration. Founded in 1985, over 800,000 students have gone through Envision programs. Each summer Envision Experience hosts over 20,000 students on college campuses across the country to help them to apply their passions, get hands-on experience trying out a career, and realize the power of their potential.